Style and luxury: just add water

If you've got the cash to spare, then a Riva will run through it,
reports David Lockwood.

IT'S EARLY on a Saturday morning and the weekend warriors
haven't yet stirred. Not so the four-blade bronze propellers
whirring astern of the brace of Riva motorboats. The floating
fashion accessories from the prestige Italian yard are a seamless
blend of old and new. Traditional lines, hand-beaten chrome
fittings and classic column shifts meet high-tech diesel engines
with two-speed automatic gearboxes, push-button onboard gadgetry, a
lofty lux factor and, oh, a high price to match.

But if this is boating Italian-style then we must do the Italian
thing first. Go hunting for attention. A roaring run down Port
Jackson, a sweep past the Prime Minister's Kirribilli digs, a
saunter before the teeth of Luna Park and across the gape of the
Harbour Bridge, before a fling around the mouth of Circular Quay.
Finally, a mad dash past the Opera Hose and down the jaws of a
wind-swept Sydney Harbour. Oh, what fun

Though my eyes are streaming and the hair is horizontal I have
no reason to doubt that we have stopped joggers in their tracks,
the ferry masters near us are green with envy, and that black
helicopter swooping overhead is taking a closer look. Later in the
day, as the throngs emerge on the harbour, I catch anglers gazing
from under floppy hats and other boaties looking with wonder.

On the harbour, as indeed the Med, Riva's 33 Aquariva and 44
Rivarama solicit attention with their wow factor. Which is why the
list of past Riva owners includes Brigitte Bardot, Dino de
Laurentiis, Richard Burton, Sean Connery, Peter Sellers, Prince
Rainier of Monaco, the Shah of Persia, and King Hussein of Jordan
to name a few. The Riva sales manager, Francesco Frediani, told me
the phones hadn't stopped ringing ever since rock star Robbie
Williams bought the Italian boatbuilder's biggest luxury cruiser,
the 115ft Athena motoryacht, which he named MY RW, for, er, um, a
reported £8 million ($19.8m).

With a Riva dealership now in Sydney you, too, can joint the
A-list. Though you won't get change out of $850,000 for the
33-footer, and the 44-footer seen here will set you back about
$1.78m. But when money is no object these are the image-enhancing
motorboats that the glitterati clamour aboard, with a cachet akin
to a Ferrari only, in my eyes at least, sexier. Sweet lines are
something that Riva has long been known for.

Far from a fly-by-night badge, Riva is said to be longest
continuous boatbuilder in the world. The story goes something like
this: Pietro Riva, a young fisherman and boat builder founded the
business in 1842 in Sarnico, a small northern Italian town on the
banks of Lake Iseo. In the 1880s, son Ernesto started fitting
piston engines to the boats.

Then his son, Serafino, turned Riva into a dedicated
outboard-engine-powered boat builder. In 1912, he reached the
exciting speed of 24kmh in his race boat.

Along with racing boats, the production of pleasure boats grew
and in the 1950s Carlo Riva inherited the yard and created a range
of famously stylish wooden boats that are collectors' items today.
In 1969, Riva adopted fibreglass construction but retained its
traditional lines. Now, as part of the Ferretti Group, the world's
third biggest boatbuilder, Riva maintains its distinction by, among
other things, having a selective production run. It makes just 11
of the 33-footers seen here each year, for example, and the waiting
list is at best nine months, I'm told.

Considering, after decades of drooling from afar, that I have
not one but two Rivas at my disposal this is a very special
occasion. Certainly, one worth getting out of bed for. But beyond
the prestige, the enviable reputation and the long history are
there tangible reasons why Rivas are so special? These are the
answers I sought during my attempt to join boating's
illuminati.

As any aficionado will attest, a boat has to look good first.
The Rivas have obvious aesthetic appeal, with rakish lines, flared
bows and traditional tumblehome. There are timber accents and
lustrous mahogany-lined foredecks topped with no less than 25 coats
of varnish. But the fine craftsmanship becomes more evident the
closer you look, which isn't usually the case with consumer items
these days.

On the smart navy-blue hulled Aquariva 33 you get a 1950's-era
handheld spotlight mounted beside the spoked steering wheel with
chrome column-mounted gearshifts and a matching revision mirror.
The upholstery is leather, of course, and the traditional
walk-through transom has twin sun lounges for working on your tan
and a concealed designer swim ladder and hot/cold handheld
shower.

When you're done with the sun it's up with the canopy, which is
no more difficult to raise than pressing a button on the dash. The
concealed unit rises like the top on a cabriolet. Quick as that,
shade is now cast over the al fresco lunch setting for six around a
drinks table that converts into a bigger dining arrangement. Wet
bar and fridge, frosted glasses, sink and cutting board
alongside.

Should you overindulge, no worries, sleep aboard. The
low-profile cabin contains a double bed and concealed vacuum
toilet. Pre-departure engine checks come at the press of another
button: the aft sun lounges split to reveal access to the twin
370hp Yanmar turbo-diesel engines. Something old, something new.
And something fast.

The 44 Rivarama is a much bigger boat. The sharp metallic-bronze
hull conceals a New York apartment below decks with all Italian
fabrics and designer soft furnishings. The open-plan layout
includes a sumptuous island double bed, bathroom with separate
shower stall and flash fittings, and a galley with, get this, an
instant wine or champagne chiller. Five minutes later you're ready
to toast the high life on the not-so-high seas.

The big outdoor entertaining area has electric canopy, icemaker
and food fridge, dedicated refrigerated wet bar and hot-rock
griddle with stainless steel splashback. And what have we here? A
door into a private aft crew cabin that would be ideal for stowing
the pesky kids. But the piece de resistance is the helm chair. At
the push of a button it turns from a one-man pod to a three-person
wing seat. Presumably, in case you get lucky.

Not necessary. Above all else, Rivas are built for driving
pleasure. One hand on the wheel, the other on the, er, column-shift
and away you go. Advance the throttles and between 2500rpm and
3000rpm the two-speed gearbox cuts in. There's a jolt before the
revs kick back, the motor purrs.

On the 33 Aquariva, top speed of 41 knots was just shy of what
was recorded during a water test weeks earlier on Lake Sarnico in
Italy. With twin 800hp MAN engines, the 44 Rivarama rocketed to
more than 40 knots.

The sensations I feel are profound and difficult to distil. But
in essence the Rivas reveal the rare ability to refresh the sense
of wonder in the commonplace, the ordinary and familiar. I saw the
harbour and those cliched landmarks flashing past through fresh
eyes. My cohort is now beaming after her stint behind the wheel. A
new spin. Pleasure boating. Italian-style.

The Aquariva is selling for $841,500 and the Rivarama costs
$1,787,500 from the Riva agents at Point Piper Marina, phone 02
9327 7847.

YACHTING Australia has announced its 2006 Australian Sailing
Team, a 22-member squad that will be training for the 2008 Beijing
Olympics. The squad includes: Mathew Belcher, Nick Behrens, Elise
Rechichi, Tessa Parkinson, Nathan Wilmot and Malcolm Page in the
470 class; Josh Beaver in the Finn; Michael Blackburn, Brendan
Casey and Tom Slingsby in the Laser; Sarah Blanck and Krystal Weir
in the Laser Radial; Belinda Stowell, Allison Shreeve and Jessica
Crisp in the new RS-X windsurfer; heavies Iain Murray and Andrew
Palfrey in the Star; Darren Bundock and Glenn Ashby in the Tornado;
and Nicky Bethwaite, Karyn Gojnich and Helen Impey in the Yngling.
Rob Brown is the new Olympic and Paralympic Team Program
Manager.

Australian National Maritime Museum curator Patricia Miles will
host a talk titled Sam Hood's Waterfront: A Sydney
Photographer's Perspective 1900-1950 in celebration of one of
the most inspiring photographers of the 20th century. She will also
reveal part of the museum's collection of 11,000 images that Hood
shot to chronicle life on the harbour between the 1890s and the
1950s. The talk starts at 10.30am on April 12 and cost is $5.
Bookings essential on (02) 9298 3777.

International vessels are no longer permitted to carry cargo
domestically after PAN Australia Shipping was recently awarded
exclusive rights to domestic freight. Its new purpose-built ship,
Boomerang I, with 1,740 teu, or container capacity, will initially
operate Sydney-Melbourne-Fremantle-Sydney. Boomerang II will arrive
in Sydney this month and will operate on the same rotation.
Boomerang III will arrive in Brisbane in May and all three vessels
will operate on a 21-day round trip from
Brisbane-Sydney-Melbourne-Fremantle-Brisbane. It is said the
service will offer savings of up to 40 per cent compared to rail
transport and perhaps make the interstate shipping of large private
boats cheaper that driving them yourself.

The NSW Heritage Office has kicked in $10,000 of a hopeful
$40,000 to help build new boilers and restore the 1927 steam-driven
buoy tender John Oxley, which is in otherwise original condition
complete with rosewood-panelled pilots' accommodation, original
mast and derrick, coal fired galley, wooden tenders and huge steam
main engine. If you would like to lend a hand to the honourable
project, contact the Sydney Heritage Fleet, 9298 3888.

Two very different boats - the first of their kind in the
country - will debut among the fleet of 45 in the 384 nautical-mile
Sydney to Gold Coast Yacht Race, starting today at 1pm near Shark
Island. Leslie Green's Swan 601, Ginger, is one of seven of the new
one-design yachts made by luxury boat builder. At the opposite
extreme is the new Stomp 38 called, well, Stomp. Owner Nick De
Laine claims his downwind flyer will "beat a Farr 40 upwind 50 per
cent of the time and downwind it will be a horizon job". The racy
Kiwi yacht has four-metre rotating bowsprit and a wardrobe of huge
asymmetric spinnakers. Follow the race at http://goldcoast.cyca.com.au.

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reports David Lockwood.Sport